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Tag: Nigerians in Diaspora

  • Five smart ways Nigerians in Diaspora grow local ventures

    Five smart ways Nigerians in Diaspora grow local ventures

    Nigerians in the Diaspora are leveraging their cultural expertise to create profitable ventures. By combining traditional skills with modern digital tools, they’re successfully turning their passions into businesses that not only generate income but also promote Nigerian culture globally.

    These entrepreneurs are packaging language, food, music, fashion, and storytelling as services and products that people are willing to pay for. They’re using digital platforms to reach diaspora communities and curious locals abroad, resulting in small businesses and side hustles that pay well.

    Some examples of these ventures include cooking classes, food products, cultural consulting for media and brands, language teaching, storytelling workshops, fashion and craft products, and content creation. These income streams thrive because they mix authenticity with good delivery, and the people who do it well treat culture as both craft and business.

    Here are five methods:

    1. Language Teaching and Storytelling Workshops: Online language teaching is a growing niche, with tutors offering one-on-one lessons, group classes, and corporate cultural briefings in languages like Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, or Pidgin. Storytellers and lecturers also share folktales and history through workshops and events.

    2. Content Creation and Paid Communities: Writers, podcasters, YouTubers, and Instagram creators monetise their cultural knowledge through sponsored content, paid newsletters, and online communities. They create engaging content like tutorials, cultural explainers, and nostalgia pieces that attract subscribers and brand partnerships.

    3. Cooking Classes and Food Products: Many Nigerians offer paid cooking classes, teaching traditional dishes like jollof rice and suya. Some also sell food products, such as bottled spices and sauces, or offer catering services and subscription meal boxes to diaspora customers.

    Read Also: URNI to mobilise 17m Nigerians in Diaspora for national rebranding, development

    4. Fashion, Craft, and Beauty Products: Designers create traditional clothing and accessories using print embroidery and other techniques, while nail artists, braiders, and hairstylists offer services that blend local trends with professional polish.

    5. Cultural Consulting for Media and Brands: With their deep understanding of Nigerian culture, some individuals offer consulting services to media producers, brands, and agencies. They advise on script casting, wardrobe, and food styling to ensure authentic portrayals.

    These ventures not only generate income but also promote Nigerian culture globally, showcasing the country’s rich heritage and creativity. By combining traditional skills with modern digital tools, Nigerians abroad are successfully turning their passions into profitable businesses.

  • Tinubu assures Nigerians in Diaspora: “Nigeria’s rise has begun”

    Tinubu assures Nigerians in Diaspora: “Nigeria’s rise has begun”

    …urges Nigerians in Diaspora to join hands in advancing national progress

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday declared that the rise of Nigeria to its rightful place in the comity of nations has already begun, assuring Nigerians in the Diaspora that the country’s economy is stabilising, opportunities are expanding, and reforms are yielding visible results.

    Speaking at an interactive session with members of the Nigerian community in Japan, held on the sidelines of the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9), the President said his administration is determined to reverse negative trends and make the country a land of prosperity for its citizens at home and abroad.

    “All I want to do is assure you that things are stable, the economy is stabilised, the opportunity is immense, people are coming back, we are reversing the medical tourism in every way that we could, and I can give you the assurance we are seeing the beginning of Nigeria rising,” Tinubu said to applause.

    He reminded the Diaspora audience that while it is a personal right to remain abroad, the nation still depends on their input to achieve its developmental aspirations.

    He said the government’s priority is to create an environment where every citizen, at home or abroad, can feel the positive impact of change.

    “I am happy to listen to you for whatever. Happy to report to you that many of our people are coming back home. Yes, for economic reasons, some people might decide to stay away; it’s a fundamental right of the individual, but for the economic growth and opportunity that is available in Nigeria, don’t stay away. Your contribution is very much needed. If you stay away, who will build it?” the President asked.

    Tinubu emphasised that his government is committed to creating an environment where every Nigerian can thrive, noting that governance is about “thinking and doing,” promoting unity, stability, and progress.

    He urged Nigerians abroad to remain good ambassadors of their country and to reflect positively on its image, stressing that “poor comments and negative reflections will not help the growth of Nigeria.”

    The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, John Enoh, who also addressed the gathering, highlighted the bold reforms undertaken by the Tinubu administration since its first day in office.

    He recalled that the World Trade Organisation’s Director-General, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had recently commended Nigeria’s policy direction, describing the reforms as the foundation of future growth.

    According to him, “we have a President who is undoubted, who is focused, and who is pursuing the reforms that our country deserves.”

    Khalil Halilu, Executive Vice Chairman of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), reported that Nigeria is now witnessing accelerated technology transfer as a direct result of presidential policies.

    He disclosed that more than 1,000 applications had been received globally for investment in Nigeria’s technology and industrial sectors, with over $2 billion already committed and factories set to be established in partnership with Japanese firms.

    From the private sector, Wale Tinubu, Group Chief Executive Officer of Oando Plc, praised the administration’s economic reforms, especially the liberalisation of the exchange rate and removal of fuel subsidies.

    He said these decisions had improved government revenues, boosted foreign investment, and spurred growth across sectors ranging from oil and gas to mining, telecommunications, and small enterprises.

    “We’ve never experienced the closeness with the government as we do today,” he remarked.

    Also speaking, Mrs. Florence Akinyemi Adeseke, Nigeria’s Chargé d’Affaires in Tokyo, commended the contributions of Nigerians in Japan, particularly academics and professionals excelling in various fields, even as she acknowledged the challenges posed by a few nationals in breach of immigration laws.

    Read Also: I’ll back anyone who supports Tinubu – Wike

    She described the meeting as an opportunity to strengthen bonds with the Diaspora community under Nigeria’s new foreign policy thrust.

    Earlier, the President of the Nigerian Union in Japan, Emeka Egbogota, welcomed Tinubu to the “Land of the Rising Sun” on behalf of the community, describing his presence at TICAD9 as a source of pride and unity.

    He praised the President’s vision for a prosperous Nigeria driven by technology, entrepreneurship, and inclusive growth, pledging the community’s support for his administration’s agenda.

    The interactive meeting ended with a renewed sense of partnership between the government and its citizens abroad, with President Tinubu reiterating his commitment to ensuring that every Nigerian has a role to play in the unfolding story of the country’s progress.

  • Nigerians in Diaspora spent N60b during 2024 Christmas visits – Official

    Nigerians in Diaspora spent N60b during 2024 Christmas visits – Official

    The Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, says  Nigerians in diaspora spent about N60 billion when they visited the country in December 2024.

     Dabiri-Erewa made this known at the 2025 budget defence session before the National Assembly Joint Committee on Diaspora in Abuja.

     The chairman revealed that remittances alone by Nigerians in diaspora in the last five years have exceeded $90 billion,

    Read Also: Nigerians in Diaspora seek probe of Calabar road diversion

     “You know, we have reached a stage where in the last five years we have shown that the diaspora is a powerful force and resource we cannot ignore.

     “And, you know, they are the number one ambassadors of our country. They will help us change the narrative of our country.

     And in fact, all over the world, everybody now wants to have a Nigerian as a friend. So let’s seize the moment. We can take over the world, and we will.

     “President Bola Tinubu has brought in reforms that everybody should support. Tackling insecurity, building infrastructure, taking the hard decisions that will make Nigeria a better place.

  • Contribute to national development, FG appeals to Nigerians in Diaspora

    Contribute to national development, FG appeals to Nigerians in Diaspora

    The Federal Government government has appealed to Nigerians in the diaspora to return home to contribute their quota to build a better and prosperous Nigeria. 

    The Chairman, Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, made the charge on Saturday in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti state capital while  delivering 12th Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti ABUAD Convocation lecture entitled: Diaspora Engagements For National Development 

    Dabiri-Erewa said that Nigerians abroad should bring back their experiences and help proffer solution to socio-ecomomic challenges hampering Nigeria’s growth and development. 

    The NIDCOM chairman, who stressed the importance of diaspora engagement for national growth and development, urged the Diaspora Nigerians to embrace the abundant opportunities available in the country. 

    She noted that Nigerians both at home and in the diaspora must join hands and coalesce efforts to develop Nigeria, as no foreigners will leave his country and help develop others.

    Dabiri-Erewa added the global of exposure and professional expertise of diaspora Nigerians who have excelled in various developmental sectors can be leveraged as catalyst for national growth and development. 

    Read Also: Nigerians in diaspora seek restructuring of NNPCL’s debt

    This , she said, the NIDCOM was working  to achieve through the implementation of supporting framework for  facilitating diaspora engagement in national growth and development. 

    Speaking, ABUAD Founder, Afe Babalola commended Dabiri-Erewa for delivering what he called a well researched and detailed lecture towards achieving a sustainable development for the country with support from Nigerians the diaspora.

    Babalola explained that the country is blessed with both human and natural resources, urging the people especially the youths to shun the idea of leaving the country to greener pasture abroad.

    He maintained that the university in the last fifteen years of its creation has impacted on the nation’s education and health sectors, which has made local and  international organizations to rate ABUAD as the best in the country and the world.

    ” Let me say that Africans are born to lead the world and I don’t know what is happening to us here. We have built a university that has been rated first in the world and a hospital adjusted the best in Africa in less than 15 years. My students are the best and next to make this country great,” he said. 

  • Nigerians in Diaspora seek Buhari’s intervention on voting right

    Nigerians in the Diaspora have appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to look into the possibility of including them to vote during elections in the country.

    Mr Obed Monago, the continental Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora (NIDO) , stated this at an interactive session between the president and the Nigerians in Diaspora in America, on the sideline of the ongoing 73rd UN General Assembly in New York.

    The meeting was convened by the Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa.

    Monago also called on the Independent Electoral Commission and the National Assembly to facilitate the amendment of the relevant sections of the Electoral Act to accommodate people living outside the country in the electoral process.

    He said that Nigerians in Diaspora should be given opportunity to exercise their franchise wherever they lived for a number of reasons.

    He said that Nigerians living outside the country should have the right to vote because they were citizens of Nigeria interested in the affairs of their own country.

    He said: “The Diaspora should be allowed to vote because they make considerable contribution to the economy through huge financial inflow.’

    Read Also: 2019: Buhari assures Nigerians in diaspora

    According to him, there is a sizable amount of Nigerian citizens living outside the country; and Diaspora voting is consistent with global best practices.

    In an interview with newsmen, the Chairman, NIDOA U.S., Mrs Patience Key, urged all Nigerians in the U.S. to join efforts to improve Nigeria’s economy.

    We have seen it all in America so we can replicate such development in our homeland, Nigeria,” she said..
    She stated that many Nigerians in the U.S. were successful individually but not collectively.

    Key advised that working collectively was vital for nation building, development and transformation
    She noted that individual successes were good but collective effort could not be undermined as it produced more outstanding results.

  • 2019: Buhari assures Nigerians in diaspora

    * Says he will make a difference if he wins

     

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday told Nigerians living in America that if he wins the 2019 election and spent another four years in office, he will leave some difference in the office.

    He gave the assurance in a meeting with the Nigerian community in the United States of America on the margins of the 73rd United Nations General Assembly in New York.

    In a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina, the President regretted that the elite allowed Nigeria to be mismanaged for 16 years of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rule, without as much as raising a voice in consternation.

    “They didn’t say a word,” President Buhari declared.

    He added “Under the PTF (Petroleum Trust Fund, of which he was Chairman), we did roads from Lagos to Abuja, to Onitsha, to Port Harcourt. Since then, the roads were not done, between 1999 and 2015, yet the elite did not say a word.

    Read Also: Osun Guber election: Buhari congratulates APC, Oyetola

    “I was called Baba Go Slow. Those who were going fast, where did they get to?

    “In 1983, military officers gathered, and made me Head of State. I packed the politicians into jail, told them they were guilty until they could prove their innocence. We seized what they had looted, but after I myself was put in detention, the politicians were given back what they had looted. How many elite complained about that?

    “Three times I contested elections; three times I went to court after the elections were rigged against me. No justice, but I said ‘God dey.’

    “It was mainly the ordinary people that stood by me. That is why I am always conscious of them. They are my constituency. Even pregnant women on the queue would fall into labour, go to have their babies, and still come back to vote for me. I will keep doing my best for the country.” he said

    The diaspora Nigerians, in their scores, are top flight professionals, drawn from fields like medicine, engineering, sports, the arts, investment, academia, politics, agriculture, transport, education, publishing, and many others.

    Most of them expressed the wish to come back home, and contribute to the change making a headway in Nigeria.

    The President replied them with “You are contributing to this great country (America). If you want to help back home, invest in education in your constituencies. If you educate people, they won’t then accept nonsense from anybody.”

    President Buhari said the administration he leads has by and large kept faith with its three key campaign promises; to secure the country, revive the economy and fight corruption.

    “I’ve tried to do my best since I came,” he stressed, adding: “Security-wise, we are better. Boko Haram still conducts cowardly attacks, but the insurgency is not the same as it used to be. They are terrorists, and have nothing to do with religion.

    “We will continue to deal with them. Ask people in the North-east, especially in Borno State, they will tell you they can sleep with two eyes closed now.” he said

    The parley was put together by Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Diaspora Matters, and the Nigerian professionals were drawn from different parts of the United States and Canada. Representatives of USA chapters of Nigerians in the Diaspora Organisation (NIDO).

    They also presented awards to President Buhari in appreciation of his performance, urging him to do more.

  • Buhari to Nigerians in diaspora: You won’t lose

    President Muhammadu Buhari has assured that anything done for the good of the country will be ultimately rewarded, and redound to the good of those behind it.

    He spoke on Monday at the State House while receiving three groups made of Nigerians in the diaspora, and some professionals hitherto based abroad, but who have returned home in recent times.

    The President, in a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina, stated: “You have been working quietly, supporting the government physically and materially, and you are doing it for your own country. Head or tail, you won’t lose. Please continue to do your best for the country.”

    Speaking on behalf of Diaspora Alliance Group, Mr Ade Omole, said the organization was a think-tank in the United Kingdom, which formulates policies to help Nigeria.

    He said that they currently have recommendations to help the country in the areas of agriculture, youth empowerment, community development, and education.

    “We also educate people in the diaspora on the good work the Buhari administration is doing for Nigeria. You are rebuilding the country. We supported you in 2015, and we will also support you in 2019,” Omole said.

    Read Also:Nigerians dying, getting poorer under Buhari – Secondus

    Dr Badewa Adejugbe-Williams, speaking on behalf of returnee professionals from the diaspora, said they were excited and willing to contribute to national development.

    “Our main goal now is investing in Nigeria. We are planning a Nigeria-Diaspora Summit on Investment soon. We are quite pleased with infrastructural development round the country. We want to attract people in diaspora to bring their money, and invest here,” she said.

    Dr Salihu-Dasuki, who spoke on behalf of young people in the diaspora, lauded President Buhari for signing the Not-Too-Young-To-Run bill into law, assuring that young people would soon begin to utilize the legislation.

    On his part, Dr Charles Cudjoe, unfolded how all Nigerians can have access to health care through minimal deductions from the credit on their cell phones, which would be deposited in a health bank in their favour. Such savings would then be accessed whenever they needed medical attention.

    President Buhari said the health initiative was very interesting, adding that “policies on health and education for the people are also dear to us.”

  • Nigerians in diaspora knock Senate over resolution on security chiefs

    Nigerians in the Diaspora under the auspices of Nigerians in Diasporas Monitoring Group, NDMG, have stated that the recent call by the Senate for President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the nation’s service chiefs is in furtherance of their ploy to separate the President from his appointees who are diligent.

    The Nigerians living abroad dismissed the state of insecurity on which the lawmakers predicated their call as a smokescreen, stressing that security breaches that would have been insignificant in the past are now being highlighted for public attention owing to the dearth of more devastating news.

    NDMG, which reacted in a statement issued on Thursday and signed by its Secretary-General, Uchenna D. Okereke, stated that the disposition of the senators can demoralise troops in the battle front and give Boko Haram terrorists an upper hand.

    The group maintained that the demand being made by the senators on Buhari is politically motivated and an integral part of  manoeuvring for the 2019 general elections, stressing that the senators do not have the capacity to assess the ongoing war against terrorism, and that hiring of experts is not enough to educate lawmakers on the enormity of what the military contend with in the theatre of war.

    The statement reads in full…

    The Nigerians in Diasporas Monitoring Group [NDMG] is dismayed by the demand from the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria asking that the military service chiefs be changed. The security situation in the country, which Senators cited as their reason, is nothing but a smokescreen given their history of continually trying to isolate President Muhammadu Buhari from the performing ones among his appointees.

    NDMG is saddened that the demand by the lawmakers is premised on anecdotal evidences and not the subject of statistical analyses that would have showed that there has been improvement in the responsiveness to security breaches on the part of the Armed Forces. The reality is that incidences that would have been insignificant in the past are now highlighted for public attention for lack of more devastating news; interpreting this as bad has the tendency to demoralize troops and hand the initiative to terrorists.

    Coming from lawmakers, who are statutorily expected to use their position to promote peace and stability in the country, we find the demand disconcerting and worrisome. This is especially so when information emanating from certain quarters confirm that the demand is politically motivated and an integral part of the 2019 General Elections manoeuvring.

    We invite the Senators to take cognisance of their place as politicians who may not have the requisite competences to assess the counter-insurgency war; this is also not a field where consultants can bring the lawmakers up to speed since it takes those in the war theatre to fully appreciate the enormity of what the military contend with on a minute by minute basis.

    The safety and security of Nigerians is more important than the political gains derivable from maligning the military. We therefore align with the individuals and organizations that had challenged the Senate to come up with legislative interventions aimed at bolstering the military’s capacity to combat the evolving threats facing the country instead of searching for scapegoats. In this, we recommend that the federal lawmakers understudy their contemporaries around the world to understand the kind of support the military requires to combat terrorism.

    We further challenge the lawmakers to be decisive in charting a course for the future of policing in Nigeria so that the military services can re-focus on their constitutional mandates without the distraction of cleaning up situations that do not require military deployments in other climes. This must concomitantly be backed with realistic budgeting, which a simple comparative analysis with other country will show is totally lacking when what they spend on their armies is considered.

     

     

    While we advise the Senate to walk back its poorly thought out position, we use this opportunity to appeal to the military chiefs and the troops under their commands not to be discouraged by the demand from the lawmakers. They should see the call as a minor skirmish in the psychological component of the ongoing counter-insurgency operation. Nigerians, the electorates who these lawmakers represent, greatly appreciate what the service chiefs have done so far.

     

     

    Nigeria shall prevail against every primordial interest or sentiment by its traducers and become great again for all her citizens in the nearest future. Let us continue to believe and support the performing ones like the current crop of Service Chiefs in our country.

    Uchenna D. Okereke

    Secretary- General

  • Amachree urges Nigerians in Diaspora to attract more tourists to the country

    Amachree urges Nigerians in Diaspora to attract more tourists to the country

    Nigerians in this Diaspora have been urged to attract more tourists to the country to boost foreign exchange earnings to the country.

    Nigeria’s Father of Tourism and President of the Centre for Promotion of Peace, Tourism, Arts and Culture (CEPTAC), Chief (Dr.) Mike Amachree, said this at a one-day parley between tourism stakeholders and Nigerians in the Diaspora at the Brooklyn Tourists Center, Port Harcourt, and River State. He said the parley has become imperative in view of economic situation facing the country.

    Amachree stressed that there is need for deliberate investment in the tourism industry to encourage the provision of jobs to meaningfully engage the teaming youths in the industries that would be established by local and foreign entrepreneurs.

    He  praised Governor Wike for his pragmatic approach in solving tourism challenges in the state by establishing the Port Harcourt Leisure Park and the massive construction of roads in the state and requested the government to do more, especially in rural areas, and encourage the private sector too. He mentioned that gone are the days we should depend on oil only. He equally called on the Federal Government to relax the entry requirements as to allow foreign tourists to enter the country.

    The Chairman of the occasion, Professor Kimse Okoko, a former Commissioner of Lands and Housing, old Rivers State and former President of  the Ijaw National Congress, commended Amachree for his efforts in the tourism business in Nigeria which has earned  him the name “Father of Tourism”.

    Okoko stated that tourism in the country is confronted with many challenges and encouraged governments to see the sub-sector as option “A” in choosing area of diversifying the country’s economy as the total dependence on oil has a detrimental effect on the development of the country.

  • ‘Nigerians in diaspora to be captured in pension scheme soon’

    As the  Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) is proposing a programme that will capture Nigerian pensioners who had served their country diligently, Nigerians in the Diaspora have a course to smile as their verification is to begin soon.

    This cheering news was announced by PTAD’s Executive Secretary, Mrs Sharon Ikeazor when she visited Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora in Abuja.

    Mrs Ikeazor said she was in the SSA’s office to see how they can work together to flag off the pension scheme for the Nigerians in the Diaspora who had served the country before travelling abroad.

    “They are our heroes and heroines who had worked for this country since independence and there is need to capture them in our pension scheme through verification and updating our data base’’ she said.

    The PTAD”s Secretary explained that the Diaspora pensioners are Nigerians who had worked in the country and due for pension but did not collect their pension before going to abroad.

    “My coming is to see how we can partner with the office of SSA to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora to enable us capture pensioners in the Diaspora so that we can have their accurate data base.

    “Verification of our pensioners is to ensure that every pensioner is captured. You know that we have a lot of pensioners in the Diaspora.

    “Am hoping that we can partner together to get all the information data on our Diaspora.

    “We want to set up a portal that will enable them to key in to the scheme and enhance their verification process without necessarily coming into the country’’, she said.

    The PTAD boss said the agency would get the nominal roll of pensioners from the state government through which it can ascertain the state and the Federal share.

    She said the directorate had suspended 15, 600 pensioners from its payroll due to lack of Bank Verification Number (BVN).

    Ikeazor said the measure was part of the agency’s commitment to getting authentic database of pensioners and streamlining its payroll.

    “So far, we have dropped about 15,600 pensioners off our pay roll that have no BVN. So we just flag their account so that money does not go in there.

    “We have told the genuine ones to update their BVN so that we can put them back on our payroll. We have saved the government millions of naira through the exercise.

    Replying, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa commended PTAD boss for the unique efforts in capturing the Diaspora pensioners, as it has never happened before.

    “This is unique in the history of Nigeria as nobody has deemed it fit to capture the data of Nigeria pensioners in the Diaspora’’, she said.